The Mughal Empire
Babur 1526-1530 AD
Known For: Babur conquered the Indian subcontinent and founded the Mughal Empire.
Also Known As: Zahir-ud-din Muhammad
Born: February 14, 1483 in Andijan, Timurid Empire
Parents: Umar Sheikh Mirza and Qutlaq Nigar Khanum
Died: December 26, 1530 in Agra, Mughal Empire
Spouse(s): Aisha Sultan Begum, Zaynab Sultan Begum, Masuma Sultan Begum, Maham Begum, Dildar Begum, Gulnar Aghacha, Gulrukh Begum, Mubarika Yousefzai
Children: 17
Originally ruled over Ferghana, Afghanistan
He was invited to attack India by Daulat Khan Lodhi, Subedar of Punjab, Alam Khan Lodhi, uncle of Ibrahim Lodhi and Rana Sanga
He was successful in his fifth expedition
The first Battle of Panipat in AD 1526 he defeated Ibrahim Lodhi
Battle of Khanwa in 1527 AD he defeated Rana Sanga of Mewar
Defeated another Rajput ruler Medini Rai in the Battle of Chanderi in 1528 AD
He defeated Muhammad Lodhi uncle of Ibrahim Lodhi in the Battle of Ghaghra
The battle of Ghaghra was the 1st battle which was fought on land and water simultaneously in medieval India
Babur was the first ruler to entitle himself Badshah
He wrote Tuzuk-i-Babari or Babarnama in Turkish
His victory led to rapid popularization of gunpowder and artillery in India
After the Kushanas he was the first to have brought Kabul and Kandhar into the Indian empire
He died in 1530 AD and was buried at Aram Bagh in Agra
Later his body was taken to Aram Bagh at Kabul
MUGHAL EMPIRE - HUMAYUN (1530-1540, 1555-1556)
Humayun was the son of Babur and Maham Anaga begum
Babur had divided his empire among the three brothers of Humayun
Kamran, Hindal and Asakari
Kamran was given Kabul and Kandahar.
Sambhal and Alwar were given to Asakari and Hindal respectively.
Humayun besieged the fortress of Kalinjar in Bundelkhand, gained a decisive victory over Afghans at Douhrua and drove out Sultan Mahmood Lodhi from Jaunpur, and even defeated Bahadur Shah of Gujarat.
Humayun captured Gujarat from Bahadur Shah and appointed Askari as its governor
But soon Bahadur Shah recovered Gujarat from Askari who fled from there.
In the east, Sher Khan became powerful. Humayun marched against him and in the Battle of Chausa, held in 1539, Sher Khan destroyed the Mughal army and Humayun escaped from there.
Humayun reached Agra to negotiate with his brothers.
In 1540, in the Battle of Bilgram or Ganges also known as Battle of Kanauj, Humayun was forced to fight with Sher Khan alone and after losing his kingdom, Humayun became an exile for the next fifteen years.
In 1952, during his wanderings in deserts of Sindh, Humayun married Hamida Banu Begum, daughter of Sheikh Ali Amber Jaini, who had been a preceptor of Humayun’s brother Hindal.
On November 23, 1542, Humayun’s wife gave birth to Akbar
Amarkot’s Hindu chief RanaPrasad promised Humayun to help him to conquer Thatta
In 1545, with Persian help, Humayun captured Kandhar and Kabul but refused to cede Kandhar to Persia.
Humayun sought help from the Safavid ruler.
Later, he defeated his brothers Kamran and Askari.
In 1555, Humayun defeated the Afghans and recovered the Mughal throne.
He died in 1556 AD due to his fall from the staircase of his library (Sher Mandal , Delhi)
Dinpanah was his second Capital
Akbar 1556 – 1605 AD
Akbar was born to Hamida Banu Begum at Amarkot in Rana Veersal’s Palace in 1542 AD
Akbar was 14 years old when he was crowned at Kalanaur in 1556 AD
Bairam Khan represented him in the Second Battle of Panipat in 1556 AD against Muhammad Adil Shah Sur’s Wazir, Hemu
Akbar defeated Hemu and reoccupied Delhi and Agra
Between 1556 – 1560 Akbar ruled under Bairam Khan Regency
The fort of Gwalior Jaunpur, Ajmer and Ranthambore were successfully occupied
Later Akbar asked Bairam Khan to procced to Mecca. On the way near Patna, Bairma Khan was murdered
He also ended the interference from the Pettticoat Government
Akbar conquered Malwa in 1561 AD defeating Baz Bahadur
He was later made the Mansabdar to honour his skill as a musician
Akbar’s earliest campaigns was against Rani Durgawati of Garh-Katanga
The two powerful forts of Rajasthan-Ranthambor and Chittor were captured by the Mughals
Akbar’s deccan campaign began with the siege of Ahmednagar - defended by Chad Bibi
Akbar’s east campaign was against Asirgarh resulting into the annexation of Khandesh 1601.
In 1562 he married the eldest daughter of Raja Bharmal of Jaipur, Harakha Bai
In 1570 he married princesses of Bikaner and Jaisalmer
In 1584 Prince Salim was married to the daughter of Raja Bhagwan Das
He won Gujarat in 1572
In order to commemorate his victory of Gujarat Akbar build Buland Darwaja at Fatehpur Sikri
Raja Maan Singh comquered Bihar, Bengal and Orissa for him
Akbar conquered Kashmir in 1586 and in 1593 he conquered Sindh
At the time of Akbar death in 1605 AD his empire included Kashmir, Sindh, Kandahar and extended as far as the Godavari in the Deccan
He was buried at Sikandara near Agra
Birbal was killed in the battle with Yusufzai Tribe 1586 AD
Abul Fazl was murdered by Bir Singh Bundella – 1601 AD
Akbar is considered the real founder of the Mughal Empire in India
“Nine Jewels or Naurattans” of Akbar
1. BIRBAL (Mahesh Das) the court Jester.
2. MIYAN TANSEN (Tanna Mishra) the court singer.
3. ABUL FAZL (The chronologist) who wrote An I Akbari.
4. FAIZI ( The court Poet)
5. MAHARAJA MAN SINGH (Army Consultant)
6. FAKIR AZIAO DIN (Sufi Singer)
7. MULLA DO-PIYAZA (depicted as Birbal's Muslim counterpart)
8. TODAR MAL (Finance Consultant)
9. ABDUL RAHIM KHAN I KHANAA (Writer of Hindi Couplets).
Reason for his greatness
There were some other prominent habits that gave respite to people for which also Akbar is remembered, they were:
1. Under the Kingship of Akbar the Jaziya taxes were abolished.
2. He appointed learned Hindu Pundits at important Government posts.
3. He talked to general people and heard their woes at DIWAN-E-AAM.
4. He interacted with Hindu Muslim and Christian scholars on important issues in DIWAN-E-KHAAS.
List of Important works of Akbar
Battles and Remarks
Jahangir (1569-1627),
Jahangir the fourth Mughal Emperor of India and patron of the arts, ruled for 22 years.
Salim son of Akbar came to the throne after Akbar’s death in 1605 AD.
He assumed the title of Nuruddin Muhammad or Jahangir.
He was born in Fatehpur Sikrinear Agra in 1569.
He married Manbai in 1585 AD the daughter of his maternal uncle Bhagwan das
He married Jodhabai or Jagat Gosain in 1587 AD who gave birth to Khusro (Shahjahan )
The eldest son of Jahangir, Khusro revolted against him but was suppressed.
Rana Amar Singh son of Maharana Pratap of Mewar Submitted before Jahangir in 1615. Rana Amar was made a Mansabdar in the Mughal court
His greatest failure was loss of Kandahar to Persia in 1622.
He was justice loving a huge bell with a chain of 30 yards was placed at the gate of royal palace in Agra. For justice sought people had to strike the bell.
This bell is called Zanzir-i-Adil.
Production of Tobacco started in his reign
He was buried at Lahore
He wrote his autobiography in Persian Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri
Jahangir's era is credited with the construction of monuments like Itimad-ud-daulah in 1622, where the use of white marble started hinting towards a new era of architecture in the Mughal emperor. The art culminated in the form of Taj Mahal built by his son Shah Jahan
The popular Shalimar Bagh in Srinagar was built by Jahangir in order to reproduce the beauty of Kashmir
Jahangir died in Kashmir in the month of October 1627, he was soon succeeded by Shah Jahan, who claimed the throne in 1628
Shah Jahan 1628 – 1658 AD
Born in Lahore in 1592
His real name was Khurram
Hea was the youngest prince to be appointed as the Governor of Deccan at the age of 15
His mother’s name is Jodha Bai/ Jagat Gosai
He got married to Arjamand Bano Begum known as Mumtaz Mahal daughter of Asaf Khan in 1612 AD
Shahjahan ordered Qasim Khan in 1532 to drive the Portuguese out of Hughli
In 1639 Shahjahan secured Kandahar and immediately fortified it. But Persia wrested Kandahar from Mughals in 1649. Shahjahan failed to recover Kandahar
Shahjahan was the second Indian ruler to invade Central Asia
He was imprisoned by his son Aurangzeb in Agra fort and died in captivity in 1658 AD.
He was buried at Taj Mahal besides his loving wife in Agra
War of Succession
Shahjahan’s four sons
Dara Shikoh was the Governor of Punjab,
Shuja was Governor of Bengal
Aurangzeb was Governor of Bengal
Murad was Governor of Gujarat
Feb 1658 – war of Bahadurpur – Dara and Shah Shuja
Shuja was defeated
April 1658 – war of Dharmat - Ujjain – Dara and Aurangzeb – Murad
Combined forces of Aurangzeb and Murad defeated Dara
May 1658 - war of Sumugarh – Agra – Dara and Aurangzeb – Murad
Dara led Mughal forces on behalf of Shahjahan against Aurangzeb. Shahjahan was put into prison by Aurangzeb in the Agra fort
Dec 1658 - war of Khajua – Allahabad – Aurangzeb and Shah Shuja
Shuja was defeated and fled to Arakan
March 1659 – war of Deorai – Ajmer – Aurangzeb and Dara
Dara was defeated and executed by Aurangzeb
Shah Jahan's married 11 times,
- Akbarabadi Mahal ( 1677)
- Kandahari Mahal ( 1609)
- Mumtaz Mahal ( 1612)
- Hasina Begum Sahiba ( 1617)
- Muti Begum Sahiba
- Qudsia Begum Sahiba
- Fatehpuri Mahal
- Sahiba (1666)
- Sarhindi Begum Sahiba (1650)
- Shrimati Manbhavathi Baiji Lal
- Sahiba (1626)
Aurangzeb 1658-1707 AD
He was the third son of Shahjahan born in Ujjain
Aurangzeb was crowned at Delhi under the title Alamgir in 1659
He was also called a Zinda Pir of the living saint
He ruled for 50 years till his death in feb 1707 in Ahmadnagar
Aurangzeb captured Guru Teg Bahadur the 9th Guru of Sikhs in 1675 and executed him when he refused to embrace Islam
The 10th and last Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh son of Guru Teg Bahadur organized followers into community of warrior called Khalsa to fight the Muslim tyranny and avenge the killing of his father
Under him the Mughal empire reached its greatest extent and the largest single state ever known in India
The Mughal empire stretched from Kashmir in the north to Jinji in the south and from Hindu Kush in the West to Chittagong in the east
Aurangzeg died in 17707 AD
He was buried at Khuldabad (Daulatabad) near Aurangabad
Popularity measures:
- He enhanced the salaries of officers.
- He abolished grain trade tax.
- He declined to accept gifts,
- He gave titles to his supporters.
Puritan measures:
- Aurangzeb banned the celebration of ‘Nauroz’ as it was an ancient practice
- He banned music.
- He ban on Hindu Festivals
- He stopped the practice of weighing the emperor in silver and gold,
- He appointed ‘Muhtasibs’ (moral preachers) for the ethical uplift of the Muslims,
- He stopped the practice of ‘jharokha’ (public audience) as it was termed as a blind faith.
Following revolts took place:
Conflict with the Jats:
There were three revolts of the Jats of Mathura against the Mughal tyranny. These revolts were primarily on account of the anti-Hindu policy of Aurangzeb. They could not tolerate the demolition of their temples. They resented the construction of a mosque at the site of the birth place of Lord Krishna at Mathura.
The land revenue charged from them was very heavy. The attitude of Abdul Nalu, the Faujdar of Mathura also led to great resentment against the Mughal rule. The conflict continued for a long time and ultimately after the death of Aurangzeb, the Jats succeeded in establishing their kingdom with its capital at Bharatpur.
Conflict with the Sikhs:
The conflict between the Sikhs and the Mughal rulers started during the reign of Jahangir when Guru Arjun Dev, the fifth Guru of the Sikhs was tortured to death by him. The struggle became intensive during the reign of Aurangzeb. The ninth guru Guru Teg Bahadur (1664-75) was greatly hurt and distressed at the persecution of the Hindus by Aurangzeb.He openly expressed his resentment against this policy.
Aurangzeb summoned him to Delhi and asked him to embrace Islam. On his refusal to do so, he was put to death after a lot of torture. Gurudwara Sisganj at Chandni Chowk in Delhi stands at the place of his martyrdom. Conflict with the Sikhs continued during the entire period of Aurangzeb.
Conflict with Bundelkhand:
Champat Rai revolted in Bundelkhand and his son Chatrasal defeated the Mongols several times.
Conflict with Marwar:
After the death of Jaswant Singh Aurangzeb tried to secure his infant son but Durga Dass foiled his attempts. The conflict continued for 30 years and in the end Bahadur Shah recognised Marwar as an independent kingdom.
Conflict with Mewar:
Rana Raj Singh of Mewar fought against Aurangzeb. The Rana and Durga Dass incited Akbar to rebel against his father. In 1684, he made peace with Mewar.
Conflict with the Marathas:
Aurangzeb’s conflict with Shivaji started in 1659 and continued till Shivaji’s death in 1680. In spite of the huge army and enormous resources of Aurangzeb, Shivaji was successful in establishing a strong Maratha empire.
Conflict with the Afghans:
The Mughal forces suffered heavy losses in the conflict that lasted for a decade. Ultimately the united front of the Afghans was broken and slowly peace restored.
Conflict with sons:
Being of suspicious nature, Aurangzeb remained in conflict with his four sons. He kept three of his sons in prison for a number of years.
Decline of Mughal Empire
- After Aurangzeb’s the Mughal empire rapidly declined
- Aurangzeb’s Rajputa and religious policies
- Weak and incompetent successors
- Jagirdari crisis
- Growth of Marathas and other regional power
- Foreign invasion of Nadir Shah and Abdali
- British conquest of India
THE LATER MUGHALS' (1707-1862)
Bahadur Shah (1707-1712)
Mu'azzam ascended throne in 1707 after having killed his brothers in the battle field, under the title of Bahadur Shah ( also known as Shah Alam-I).
Pursued pacifist policy and was therefore known as Shah Bekhabar
He made peace with Guru Gobind Sigh and Chatrasal
He was not able to eliminate Jaziya.
He defeated Banda Bahadur at Lohgarh
He could not prevent the decline of the empire due to his sudden death in 1712.
Jahandar Shah (1712 - 1713)
Bahadur Shah's death followed a fresh war of succession among his four sons, Jahandar Shah, Azim-us-Shah, Jahan Shah and Rafi-is-Shah.
The last three were killed in the course of war and Jahandar Shah managed to ascend the throne with the help of Zulfiqar Khan
He was the first puppet Mughal Emperor
Jai Singh of Amber was given the title of Mirza Raja Sawal and Ajit Singh wa awarded the title of Maharaja
He abolished Jaziya
The fate did not allow him to rule, and Azim-us-Shah's son Farrukhsiyar took his toll and ascended the throne.
FARRUKHSIYAR (1713 - 1719)
He owed his elevation to the throne to two Sayyid brothers, who were the real power in the state.
His attempt to assert his own power made his reign agitated and perplexing one, ending in another imperial tragedy.
He was deposed, blinded and executed by his own Sayyid ministers.
Zulfiqar Khan was murdered
Banda Bahadur was executed at Gurudaspur
Farruklhsiyar was murdered by the Sayyid brother with the help Marathas in 1719 AD
Rafi-ud-Darajat, Rafi-ud-Dallah (1719)
The King-makers (the Sayyid Ministers), 'Abdullah and Hussain Ali, raised to the throne two phantom kings, Rafi-Ud-Darajat & Rafi-ud-Dallah, sons of Rafi-us-Shan. But within few months the Sayyids who determined to rule through the Imperial puppets thought that a youth of eighteen named Roshan Akhtar, son of Jahan Shah could be a better docile agent of them.
MUHAMMAD SHAH (1719 - 1748)
Roshan Akhtar ascended the throne as Muhammad Shah in 1719.
Sayyid brothers were soon killed by Muhammad Shah.
The Marathas established their power again,
Jats became independent near Agra, the Ruhelas founded Ruhelkand, Sikhs became active in Panjab.
The invasion of Nadir Shah of Persia hit the empire with a greater blow.
AHMAD SHAH BAHADUR (1748 - 1754)
Ahmad Shah, son of Muhammad Shah, was unable to hold the forces together that had grown so alarming.
The empire abruptly reduced to a small district round Delhi.
The emperor was deposed and blinded in 1754 by the wazir Ghazi-ud-din Imad-ul-mulk, a grandson of the deceased Nizam-ul-mulk of the Deccan who now played a role of King maker.
ALAMGIR-II (1754 - 1759)
Aziz-ud-din', the son of Jahandar Shah was placed on the throne by the new king maker.
He adopted the same title as the great Aurangzeb, and called himself 'Alamgir-II'.
The new ruler was a kind of 'prisoner on the throne' in the hand of king maker.
His attempt to free himself resulted in his ruin, the emperor was put to death by Ghazi-ud-din Imad-ul-mulk's orders.
He defeated the Marathas in the third Battle of Panipat
SHAH ALAM-II (1759 - 1806)
The son and the successor of Alamgir-II, Shah Alam-II
Having been blinded by the Afghan chief Gulam Qadir, he was saved by the Maratha Sindhia.
He fought the Battle of Buxar in 1764 AD and was defeated by the British
After 1803, the year in which the British took control of Delhi and this unlucky sovereign had to throw himself ultimately on the protection of the English and live as their pensioner till his death in AD 1806.
AKBAR II (1806 - 1837)
The king gave Raja Ram Mohan Roy the title of Raja
Lord Hastings ceased to accept the sovereign of Mughals and claimed the status of pensioner of the East India Company
BAHADUR SHAH-II (1837 - 1862)
- He was the Last Mughal Emperor
- He was confined by the British in the Red Fort
- During the 1857 sepoy revolt he was proclaimed the emperor of India by the rebels.
- He was deported to Rangoon and died there
- He used to write Shairis in the pen name of Zafar
Socio Economic Condition
Society
Society was stratified into several classes.
Both Sati and child marriage were readily practiced
Purdah system was in vogue both among the Hindus and the Muslims
Economy
Both trade and commerce flourished with the European nations
Cotton, Indigo, Opium and tobacco was produced
Mughal rulers encouraged agriculture, industries and crafts
Ports
Surat, Cambay, Cochin and Masulipattnam
Mughal Emperor’s Work:
Babur: He was a great scholar and had taken up a responsibility of building up of schools and colleges in his empire.
Humayun: He had huge love for books, of subject related to stars and natural features; he also built, many Madarsa next to Delhi, so that peoples can go there and learn.
Akbar: He made to build a large number of colleges and schools at Agra and also at Fatehpur Sikri for high learning, as he wants that every single person of his empire would receive an education.
Jahangir: He was a great researcher of the languages like Turki and Persian and he also had written a book Tuzuk-i- Jahangiri, expressing all his memories.
Education:
According to Dr. Srivastava, “The Mughal government did not had any department of education, to make sure that every child would go to school or college. During Mughal reign education is like a private affair, where people had made their own engagements for educating their children.”
Also, there are separate schools for both Hindus and Muslims, and their customs of sending children to school are poles apart.
Hindu Education: Primary schools for Hindus’ were maintained by grants or endowments, for which pupils would not have to give fees.
Muslim Education: The Muslims used to send their children to Maktabs for getting education, which were closed to the mosque and these types of school existed in every town and village. At the primary standard, every child had to learn the Quran.
Women Education: Private tutors for education of their daughters were being arranged by nobles at home, as women did not have any right to educate beyond the primary standard.
Literature:
Persian: Akbar brings out the level of Persian to status of the state language, which lead to the growth of literature.
Sanskrit: Work in Sanskrit could not be shaped up to the level as desired by Mughals, during the rule of the Mughals.
Fine Arts:
Golden period for the development of painting in India is considered to be a Mughal period.
Different kinds of school for teaching Art were as follows:
School of Old Tradition: Ancient style of painting was flourished in India prior to sultanate period. But this tradition seemed to get decayed, after the eighth century, and from the thirteen century palm-leaf manuscripts and the Jain texts illustration shows that tradition had not died.
Mughal Painting: The school developed by Akbar during the Mughal rule act as a centre of production.
European Painting: Portuguese priest introduced European painting at the court of Akbar.
Rajasthan School of Painting: This form of painting involves the combination of the present ideas and the former traditions of western India and the of Jain school of painting with different style of Mughal paintings.
Pahari School of Painting: This school sustained the Rajasthan styles of painting and had played an important role in its development.
Music:
This proved to be the one and only intermediate of the Hindu-Muslim unity, during the Mughal Rule. Akbar patronizes Tansen of Gwalior, in his court. Tansen was a person who was credited with composing of many new Melodies and Ragas.
In 1572, Akbar commenced a palace-comfort complex at Fatehpur Sikri (36 kilometers from Agra), which was completed in eight years.
The climax of fort building was reached at Delhi with the construction of Lal Qila (Red Fort) by Shah Jahan.
The Gujarat style of architecture was used most widely in the palace built probably for the Rajput wife or wives.
Persian or Central Asian influence can be seen in the glazed blue tiles used for decoration in the walls or for tiling the roofs.
One of the most magnificent constructions was the Buland Darwaza (Lofty Gate), which was constructed in 1576 at Fatehpur Sikri to commemorate Akbar’s victory in Gujarat.
By the end of Jahangir’s reign, the practice of constructing buildings entirely of marble and decorating the walls with floral designs made of semi-precious stones began.
The particular method of decoration, popular as ‘pietra dura,’ became more popular under Shah Jahan. Shah Jahan used this technique while constructing the Taj Mahal.
The Taj Mahal is a great example of Mughals’ architecture, which brought together all the architectural forms developed by the Mughals in a very pleasing manner.
Humayun’s tomb built at Delhi (during Akbar’s reign), has a massive dome of marble; normally, it is considered as a precursor of the Taj Mahal.
The chief glory of the Taj Mahal is the massive dome and the four slender minarets linking the platform to the main building.
Mosque-building also reached its climax under Shah Jahan, the two most noteworthy mosques are −
- The Moti Masjid (at the Agra fort): It is built (like the Taj Mahal) entirely of marble, and
- The Jama Masjid (at Delhi): It is built of red sandstone.
The Mughal architectural traditions based on a combination of Hindu and Turko-Iranian forms along with decorative designs were continued during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.
Mughal traditions influenced the palaces and forts of many provincial and whole kingdoms.
The Golden Temple (of the Sikhs), located at Amritsar (in Punjab), was built on the arch and dome principle and incorporated many features of the Mughal traditions of architecture.
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